David Urban

Professor David V. Urban of Calvin University’s Department of English specializes in Renaissance and seventeenth-century British literature, particularly Milton and Shakespeare, C. S. Lewis, American literature through the Civil War, and the Bible as literature. His scholarship bridges literary analysis with Christian orthodoxy, examining how reader-response criticism intersects with devotional application in Milton’s works. He has authored and edited several books, including Milton and the Parables of Jesus (2018) and Religions in Shakespeare’s Writings (2020), and is working on two book projects exploring Milton’s influence on C. S. Lewis and vice versa.

Education:

• Ph.D. in English, University of Illinois at Chicago (2001), focusing on Early Modern British Literature, American Literature, and Literary Theory
• M.Div., Trinity International University (1998), Summa cum Laude
• M.A. in English, University of Illinois at Chicago (1994)
• B.A. in English, Northwestern University (1990), Phi Beta Kappa

His research highlights the foundational influence of Jonathan Richardson’s Explanatory Notes (1734) on Stanley Fish’s Surprised by Sin, challenging the common attribution of Fish’s methodology to C. S. Lewis. Urban’s work emphasizes Milton’s intent to spiritually challenge readers, particularly in books 11–12 of Paradise Lost.

Scientific Awards and Grants:

• Multiple Calvin Research Fellowships for course releases (2012–2023)
• Calvin Center for Christian Scholarship grants (2017, 2019)
• Diekema Fellow at Calvin College (2004–2009)
• Dissertation Research Award at University of Illinois at Chicago (2000)
• Community Service Award, Oklahoma Baptist University (2003)

Urban serves as an associate editor for The Year’s Work in English Studies (OUP) and is a Faculty Associate with the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. His critical essays appear in journals like Milton Studies, Milton Quarterly, and Appositions: Studies in Renaissance/Early Modern Literature and Culture.